Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to semiconductor devices, and more specifically, to FinFET devices where fins are cut during replacement gate formation.
Description of the Related Art
A fin metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor (finMOSFET or FinFET) can provide solutions to metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) scaling issues at and below, for example, the 22 nanometer (nm) node of semiconductor technology. A FinFET includes at least one narrow semiconductor fin (e.g., less than 30 nm wide) gated on at least two opposing sides of each of the at least one semiconductor fin. FinFET structures can, for example, typically be formed on either a semiconductor-on-insulator (SOI) substrate or a bulk semiconductor substrate.
A feature of a FinFET is a gate electrode located on at least two sides of the channel formed along the longitudinal direction of the fin. Due to the advantageous feature of full depletion in the fin structure, the increased number of sides (e.g., two or three) on which the gate electrode controls the channel of the FinFET enhances the controllability of the channel in a FinFET compared to a planar MOSFET. The improved control of the channel, among other things, allows smaller device dimensions with less short channel effects as well as larger electrical current that can be switched at high speeds.